War Lord Read Online Free PDF
Author: David Rollins
to come here in person. I’m not proud of my last performance.’
I didn’t know what to say. I was a little in shock myself. One minute I was surfing soft porn lying around on a beach on St Barts and the next I was looking at Anna reincarnated, full of forgiveness, a bucket of fried chicken in her hand. Surreal was the word that came to mind. I must have been looking at that bucket because she glanced down at it then lifted it onto the table.
‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘I’m not here to throw fried chicken at you.’
‘That’s a relief,’ I said.
‘Anna loved you, by the way. But you know that.’
I did know that.
She ran her fingers through chocolate-colored hair, then flicked her head a little to reposition the bangs. ‘It’s been a hell of a trip.’ She took in my interior-decorating skills again. ‘Who does a girl have to blow to get a drink around here?’ Marnie might have looked like Anna, but she didn’t talk like her.
‘Well, that guy’s not around, but I’ll see what I can rustle up.’ I headed for the kitchen. ‘There’s Jacks or single malt,’ I said over my shoulder. ‘I might have a couple of beers.’
‘Beer, please,’ she said.
I looked in the fridge and saw a pair of Heinekens, the right number. ‘Glass?’ I called out.
‘Thanks.’
I took the tops off the bottles, delivered hers with the glass and then poured it for her.
‘Friends?’ she said, holding up the glass.
I clinked it with the bottle, said, ‘Friends,’ and took a swig.
‘So, you really got a bit of a shock when you opened the door, right?’
I was going to say that I’d thought I was looking at a ghost, but I changed my mind. ‘Yeah.’
‘When we were in our teens people used to think Anna and I were twins.’
I could believe it. The similarity would once have been uncanny, but now it was spooky given that Anna was dead. I moved it along. ‘Not that I believe in these things, but it’s a coincidence that you should arrive just now.’
‘Really? Why’s that?’
I spun my laptop around and touched the space bar. The screen lit up showing a woman lying face down on white sand.
‘Did I interrupt you in the middle of something?’ she asked with a raised eyebrow.
I backspaced and the girl in the white bikini bottoms was now standing on the shoreline, her top around her neck, hanging in her cleavage.
Marnie sipped her beer. ‘You were saying something about a coincidence?’
I skipped through another half dozen pages showing the white bikini girl in various semi-nude poses.
‘I can come back, if you like?’ Marnie said sarcastically. ‘How long do you need? A minute or two?’
Finally, an image opened of the white prow of an old fishing boat against the blue of the sea and the sky.
‘Hey, I know this website. That’s home – St Barts. You were checking this out?’ Marnie asked.
‘I was about to book a trip, head over, get in some diving. That was Anna’s plan. She was gonna come to St Barts and spend time with you. At the funeral, I never got around to telling you that.’
‘I guess I never gave you the opportunity.’
No, she hadn’t.
‘It’s kinda freaky that I should suddenly just turn up on your doorstep then,’ she added.
Like I was saying.
Another knock on the door. ‘Excuse me,’ I told her and opened up on Arlen armed with a six-pack of Heinekens. I was about to tell him to come on in when he said, ‘Hey, Marnie,’ pushed past me and went straight over to her. I stood back and watched as they air-kissed and embraced and asked each other how the other was, and so forth. I gathered that Arlen and Marnie had become Facebook friends since hitting it off at the wake, after I’d been given my marching orders.
Once the pleasantries were out of the way, along with a repeat of the conversation about how much Marnie now looked like a certain someone else, Arlen went over more old ground about the trip to St Barts, which, if nothing else, at least confirmed
I didn’t know what to say. I was a little in shock myself. One minute I was surfing soft porn lying around on a beach on St Barts and the next I was looking at Anna reincarnated, full of forgiveness, a bucket of fried chicken in her hand. Surreal was the word that came to mind. I must have been looking at that bucket because she glanced down at it then lifted it onto the table.
‘Don’t worry,’ she said. ‘I’m not here to throw fried chicken at you.’
‘That’s a relief,’ I said.
‘Anna loved you, by the way. But you know that.’
I did know that.
She ran her fingers through chocolate-colored hair, then flicked her head a little to reposition the bangs. ‘It’s been a hell of a trip.’ She took in my interior-decorating skills again. ‘Who does a girl have to blow to get a drink around here?’ Marnie might have looked like Anna, but she didn’t talk like her.
‘Well, that guy’s not around, but I’ll see what I can rustle up.’ I headed for the kitchen. ‘There’s Jacks or single malt,’ I said over my shoulder. ‘I might have a couple of beers.’
‘Beer, please,’ she said.
I looked in the fridge and saw a pair of Heinekens, the right number. ‘Glass?’ I called out.
‘Thanks.’
I took the tops off the bottles, delivered hers with the glass and then poured it for her.
‘Friends?’ she said, holding up the glass.
I clinked it with the bottle, said, ‘Friends,’ and took a swig.
‘So, you really got a bit of a shock when you opened the door, right?’
I was going to say that I’d thought I was looking at a ghost, but I changed my mind. ‘Yeah.’
‘When we were in our teens people used to think Anna and I were twins.’
I could believe it. The similarity would once have been uncanny, but now it was spooky given that Anna was dead. I moved it along. ‘Not that I believe in these things, but it’s a coincidence that you should arrive just now.’
‘Really? Why’s that?’
I spun my laptop around and touched the space bar. The screen lit up showing a woman lying face down on white sand.
‘Did I interrupt you in the middle of something?’ she asked with a raised eyebrow.
I backspaced and the girl in the white bikini bottoms was now standing on the shoreline, her top around her neck, hanging in her cleavage.
Marnie sipped her beer. ‘You were saying something about a coincidence?’
I skipped through another half dozen pages showing the white bikini girl in various semi-nude poses.
‘I can come back, if you like?’ Marnie said sarcastically. ‘How long do you need? A minute or two?’
Finally, an image opened of the white prow of an old fishing boat against the blue of the sea and the sky.
‘Hey, I know this website. That’s home – St Barts. You were checking this out?’ Marnie asked.
‘I was about to book a trip, head over, get in some diving. That was Anna’s plan. She was gonna come to St Barts and spend time with you. At the funeral, I never got around to telling you that.’
‘I guess I never gave you the opportunity.’
No, she hadn’t.
‘It’s kinda freaky that I should suddenly just turn up on your doorstep then,’ she added.
Like I was saying.
Another knock on the door. ‘Excuse me,’ I told her and opened up on Arlen armed with a six-pack of Heinekens. I was about to tell him to come on in when he said, ‘Hey, Marnie,’ pushed past me and went straight over to her. I stood back and watched as they air-kissed and embraced and asked each other how the other was, and so forth. I gathered that Arlen and Marnie had become Facebook friends since hitting it off at the wake, after I’d been given my marching orders.
Once the pleasantries were out of the way, along with a repeat of the conversation about how much Marnie now looked like a certain someone else, Arlen went over more old ground about the trip to St Barts, which, if nothing else, at least confirmed
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